The elevator doors opened with a metallic click, and the woman and child slowly stepped inside.
After the button was pressed, the gears began to turn, the iron chain tightened, and the elevator slowly pulled them toward the upper level.
Poplar Street was located above Jig-Jig Street.
By reaching this place, the two of them had practically managed to leave the Jig-Jig Street area and barely escape the pursuit of the Tyger Claws.
“Where did you park the car?”
Leon asked while checking his clothes and body, brushing off the small pieces of flesh and blood that had stuck to him.
The unusual ancient-looking katana was strapped to his back; the long blade hung diagonally across his spine and was almost half as tall as he was.
Leon could not do anything about it.
Items once taken out of the Database could not be put back inside.
He could only carry it on his back like this, which made him look somewhat awkward.
If some wandering swordsman had been carrying it, such a weapon would probably have given him an air of casual elegance, but when she saw it on the back of a small child, Vanessa Hale could only find the sight somewhat amusing.
“We only have a short walk to the open parking lot outside,” she replied with a smile, took Leon by the hand, and led him forward.
Leon did not pull his hand away.
He simply let her lead him, and together they headed toward the parking lot.
Late at night, there were not many pedestrians on Poplar Street.
The surrounding skyscrapers still glittered with lights, while neon advertisements constantly flickered, as though they would never go out, giving the entire city its distinctive cyberpunk appearance.
Now that she had finally escaped the dangerous pursuit, Vanessa seemed to be in a very good mood.
Her expression relaxed, and from time to time she would secretly glance at Leon from the corner of her eye.
If she had not personally experienced all of it, she would have found it hard to believe that tonight’s events had really happened.
Just because she had won a lot of money playing pachinko, she had ended up on someone’s hit list for absolutely no reason.
And then some child who had not even grown up yet helped her escape from the people chasing her!
There were also his incredible reflexes…
And that katana that had suddenly appeared in his hands.
Everything about that child seemed shrouded in mystery.
“Speaking of which, I really owe you a lot for tonight, little guy. If it weren’t for you, I probably would have ended up dead at the hands of those gangers.”
Vanessa said this in a gentle voice and turned her head to look directly at Leon’s face.
Leon also turned toward her.
The two of them, one adult and one small, simply looked at each other for several moments.
Then Leon completely ruined Vanessa’s mood with a single sentence.
“You’re welcome, Auntie.”
“If you hadn’t knocked that guy down just now, I’d probably be dead too.”
You’re already old enough, and you still want me to call you big sister?
You’re supposed to become my adoptive mother.
I can’t mess up the generations that badly…
Leon thought to himself.
Vanessa’s lips twitched slightly.
For a moment, she felt that this little guy might not be quite so cute after all.
“No matter how you look at it, you saved me. If you want some kind of reward, just tell me.”
She took a deep breath, smiled again, and continued:
“And one more thing, where do you live? It’s already late. Do you want me to drive you home first?”
Leon lowered his head.
His messy hair moved slightly in the night breeze, so Vanessa could not see the expression on his face.
But his next words, spoken in a completely indifferent tone, still awakened her sympathy.
“I haven’t had a home for a long time,” Leon said calmly, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him.
The calmer his voice was, the harder his words hit.
“I’ve lived on Jig-Jig Street since I was little. Now, after killing a member of the Tyger Claws, I can’t go back anymore.”
Perhaps Leon had seemed too mature up until that moment, so only now did Vanessa see for the first time the loneliness and vulnerability appropriate for his age.
She suddenly wanted to hug the child, but the street was not the right place for that.
Vanessa immediately felt regret.
She should not have brought up that subject.
A child who knew every street of Jig-Jig Street so well and even knew members of the Tyger Claws had obviously lived there since he was very young.
She simply had not expected Leon to be an orphan.
The two of them fell silent for a while and continued toward the roadside parking lot without saying a word.
Vanessa approached a sports car, deactivated the security system using the chip implanted beneath her skin, then walked to the passenger side, opened the door, and gestured for Leon to get in.
Leon also looked at the car.
Quadra Turbo-R V-Tech.
The body had sharp, clearly defined lines, while at the same time retaining a fluid, aerodynamic appearance.
The entire car was painted azure blue, and the two-seat cabin looked comfortable and spacious.
It had rear-wheel drive.
A sports car.
It was not cheap, but for someone in a mid-level management position at a major corporation, it was still not an unattainable luxury.
When he saw Vanessa holding the door open for him, Leon did not pretend to be shy.
He simply sat in the passenger seat and placed the katana beside him.
Vanessa then got into the driver’s side and started the car.
A deep roar of the engine came from the rear, and the sports car slowly left the parking lot.
Leon leaned against the window and silently watched the nighttime scenery passing by.
This was the first time since arriving in this cyberpunk world that he had truly left Jig-Jig Street.
This would be the turning point of his life!
“By the way, I still haven’t asked your name. I’m Vanessa Hale. Hmm… I work for Kang Tao.”
“Leon Mercer.”
“Mercer?” Vanessa looked at him with mild surprise.
“I didn’t expect to run into someone with that surname here of all places.”
Japantown was one of the main parts of Westbrook.
As a large area encompassing numerous smaller streets and zones, both Jig-Jig Street and Poplar Street belonged to Japantown.
As its name suggested, a large portion of Japantown’s population was of Japanese origin, while people from all kinds of other backgrounds came and went depending on their job, corporation, or the street they ended up on.
“I don’t know much about my own origins either. I’m an orphan. Leon Mercer is simply the name listed in my identification data,” Leon explained.
Vanessa tilted her head slightly and looked at his profile.
A rather bold idea suddenly came to mind.
“If you don’t mind… would you like me to take care of you from now on?”
Leon showed surprise at just the right moment.
He looked both confused and hesitant as he uncertainly asked:
“Are you serious… Auntie?”
Smack.
Vanessa held the steering wheel with one hand and lightly tapped him on the forehead with the other.
“Can you stop calling me ‘Auntie’? I’m only twenty-one years old.”
“Then do you want me to call you ‘Mom’?”
Leon blinked and covered his forehead with his hand.
For a moment, Vanessa felt a strange warmth in her chest, but in the end she still said seriously:
“Call me ‘big sister’!”
“Well, a big sister often ends up being like a second mother. So I wasn’t even that wrong!” Leon said, pretending to feel wronged.
“Fuck, where did you pick up a saying like that?” Vanessa cursed, then burst out laughing.
“I’ve lived in Japantown for as long as I can remember. People here constantly use all kinds of old proverbs and sayings, so I picked up a few,” Leon replied.
“Let’s change the subject. First tell me, where did you get that katana?” Vanessa asked, turning her gaze toward him.
She still could not understand how Leon had managed to suddenly pull a katana out of nowhere.
Leon’s expression immediately became serious.
“Are you sure you want to know?”
“What, some big secret?” Vanessa asked.
“If Auntie really wants to hear it, then I have nothing to hide. Actually, when I was six years old, I met a homeless man on Jig-Jig Street,” Leon began making up a story in an entirely serious voice.
“A homeless man?”
“Yes. I felt sorry for him, so I bought him some food. After that, when he saw my incredible talent, he offered to sell me the katana for only 10 Eurodollars.”
“I thought he was just trying to ask for some money in a roundabout way, so I didn’t want to embarrass him. I took 10 Eurodollars out of my pocket and gave them to him. Then he told me that from that moment on, the katana was already mine and that if I ever found myself in danger, it would appear directly in my hand by itself!”
When she heard that story, Vanessa did not believe it in the slightest at first.
But when she looked at Leon’s completely serious face, she still began to doubt a little.
After all…
That katana really had seemed to suddenly appear in his hands just now!
“Really?”
Leon sighed and looked at her as though he were talking to a complete idiot.
“Auntie, out of good intentions I even made up a story so I wouldn’t leave you without an answer…”
“Just pretend it’s true.”
“You little brat…”
Vanessa could no longer hold herself back and laughed out loud.
“Fine, if you don’t want to tell me, I won’t ask anymore. By the way, how’s the air-conditioning temperature? Are you cold?”
“No.”
“Then how about this. Let’s make a deal. I’ll give you 500 Eurodollars a month as pocket money. In return, stop calling me ‘Auntie’ and call me ‘big sister.’ Deal?”
“Deal, big sister.”
“Pfft! You greedy little bastard!”